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How did it come to this? Saparata still wasn’t sure. He… He knew Fluixon was ambitious, and that he believed Island One would wipe them all out, but he didn’t know the man was crazy ! Better yet, he didn’t know he was so heartless as to frame his own friend. The war was over. The multi-nation alliance had defeated Infernus and their allies. The shared dream of world peace had finally been achieved. So, why was Saps’ heart so empty? Why did he still feel remorse? He shouldn’t have. If Flux had been the one to kill him, Saps could guarantee he wouldn’t have batted an eye.
But, then again, Flux didn’t have to come to the colosseum. He could’ve fled with Thomas, could’ve hidden deep in the snowy wasteland like Saps once did. So why did he come? Why did he fight, knowing very well that even if he did win, there was a chance the spectators would jump into the ring and kill him anyway? Saps’ thoughts raced, spinning on and on in his head until a voice spoke from behind him, followed by a hand on his shoulder. “Saps, are you alright? You look tense.” The aforementioned man jolted a bit, his vision focusing back in on the headstone in front of his face.
Right. He was at Flux’s grave. He rubbed his eyes and turned around, coming face to face with a worried Cass. “Yeah– Yeah, I’m fine. Just… Just a little tired still. That battle took a lot out of me.” He forced a laugh out of his throat, but it didn’t sound genuine at all. It honestly just made him look a little pathetic. Cass, meanwhile, wasn’t buying it. “You’ve been sitting in front of his grave for almost two hours.” Her voice carried both concern and a hint of resentment for the man lying beneath the dirt. “I know he was your friend, but you have to remember that he killed our friends. Hell, he tried to have you killed, Saps. He framed you knowing that you would be hunted down and executed.”
Saps’ jaw clenched. “I know, Cass. I hate him, I really do. It’s just… complicated, that’s all.” He mumbled, eyes drifting back over to the sign he had placed on Flux’s grave; “Fluixon: Goodbye, friend.” Why had he still included that last part? ‘Friend’? Could he really call Flux his friend at this point? He shouldn’t. He really shouldn’t. Hell, the only right thing to do here would be to take down this grave and throw his head into the ocean. But, he was weak. He couldn’t bring himself to do it.
“Can’t say no to a friend, can I?”
That was one of the last things Flux had said before he jumped into the arena and met his end. He… He had called Sals his friend . Did he feel remorse for the events that had transpired? Did he regret his plan? He still had so many questions for Flux. But now, he could never ask him. God, that asshole really did get the last laugh. Saps internally cursed the man, lightly kicking at the grass beneath him.
Cass snapped him out of his daze again. “‘Well, I need to head back before it gets too dark.” She turned around and started heading down the mountain back to the Cass Coalition, pausing for a moment at the staircase. “Please, Saps. Take care of yourself. You’re free to come visit us whenever you’d like.” She smiled softly at him from over her shoulder, and then she was gone.
Now, Saps was alone with his ghosts again. The ones that had never left his side since the day his home was turned into a slaughterhouse. The ones that had fallen in the Infernus War. The ones that died hating him before the truth was revealed and his name was cleared. And, of course. The one that was always over his shoulder, grinning and teasing him relentlessly. The man with the raven hair and the piercing purple eyes.
The man who, after everything, still clutched Saps’ heart in his cold embrace.